The Lord says,
“I was ready to respond,
but no one asked for help.
I was ready to be found,
but no one was looking for me.
I said,
‘Here I am,
here I am!’
to a nation that did not call on my name.
…when I called,
you did not answer.
When I spoke,
you did not listen.
You deliberately sinned—
before my very eyes—
and chose to do what you know I despise.”
Isaiah 65:1, 12
Oh,
that you would burst from the heavens and come down!
How the mountains would quake in your presence!
As fire causes wood to burn
and water to boil,
your coming would make the nations tremble.
Then your enemies would learn the reason for your fame!
When you came down long ago,
you did awesome deeds beyond our highest expectations.
And oh,
how the mountains quaked!
For since the world began,
no ear has heard
and no eye has seen a God like you,
who works for those who wait for him!
Isaiah 64:1-4
I will tell of the Lord’s unfailing love.
I will praise the Lord for all he has done.
I will rejoice in his great goodness to Israel,
which he has granted according to his mercy and love.
He said, “They are my very own people.
Surely they will not betray me again.”
And he became their Savior.
Isaiah 63:7-8
Go out through the gates!
Prepare the highway for my people to return!
Smooth out the road;
pull out the boulders;
raise a flag for all the nations to see.
The Lord has sent this message to every land:
“Tell the people of Israel,
‘Look, your Savior is coming.
See,
he brings his reward with him as he comes.’”
They will be called “The Holy People”
and “The People Redeemed by the Lord.”
And Jerusalem will be known as “The Desirable Place”
and “The City No Longer Forsaken.”
Isaiah 62:10-12
O Jerusalem,
I have posted watchmen on your walls;
they will pray day and night,
continually.
Take no rest,
all you who pray to the Lord.
Give the Lord no rest until he completes his work,
until he makes Jerusalem the pride of the earth.
Isaiah 62:6-7
You will know at last that I, the Lord,
am your Savior and your Redeemer,
the Mighty One of Israel.
I will make peace your leader
and righteousness your ruler.
Violence will disappear from your land;
the desolation and destruction of war will end.
Salvation will surround you like city walls,
and praise will be on the lips of all who enter there.
At the right time,
I, the Lord, will make it happen.”
Isaiah 60:16-18, 22
“And what do I see flying like clouds to Israel,
like doves to their nests?
They are ships from the ends of the earth,
from lands that trust in me,
led by the great ships of Tarshish.
They are bringing the people of Israel home from far away,
carrying their silver and gold.
They will honor the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel,
for he has filled you with splendor.”
Isaiah 60:8-9
“Arise, Jerusalem! Let your light shine for all to see.
For the glory of the Lord rises to shine on you.
Darkness as black as night covers all the nations of the earth,
but the glory of the Lord rises and appears over you.
All nations will come to your light;
mighty kings will come to see your radiance.
“Look and see,
for everyone is coming home!
Your sons are coming from distant lands;
your little daughters will be carried home.
Isaiah 60:1-4
“The Redeemer will come to Jerusalem
to buy back those in Israel
who have turned from their sins,”
says the Lord.
“And this is my covenant with them,”
says the Lord.
“My Spirit will not leave them,
and neither will these words I have given you.”
Isaiah 59:20-21
“…this is the kind of fasting I want:
Free those who are wrongly imprisoned;
lighten the burden of those who work for you.
Let the oppressed go free,
and remove the chains that bind people.
Share your food with the hungry,
and give shelter to the homeless.
Give clothes to those who need them,
and do not hide from relatives who need your help.
Then your salvation will come like the dawn,
and your wounds will quickly heal.
Your godliness will lead you forward,
and the glory of the Lord will protect you from behind.
Then when you call, the Lord will answer.
‘Yes, I am here,’ he will quickly reply.”
Isaiah 58:60-9
